I am currently studying US History, focusing on the period after the Civil War up to WWI (1860's to 1910) What was God doing in America during that Period (it could be other Periods, too)? Why should I do this?

I am very interested in seeing God's Hand in "events" that transpire. This is known as pursuing Providential History [PH]. Many professional Evangelical Historians, such as George Marsden and Mark Noll, Jay Green, John Fea, Timothy Larson and Carl Truman reject PH as such (because it is not subject to objective verification or falsification). These Historians, like their secular colleagues, are committed to a “scientific”, empirical Methodology. They believe in God but in everyday practice they process historical events as Philosophical Naturalists (which does not make allowances for any God) However, some professional Historians do believe in PH, eg- Steven Keillor, Tom Nettles, Rodney Stark, Roger Schultz, Larry Schweikart, Cornelius vanTil and Gregg Singer.

Here are Reasons why I am convinced that Providential History is not only valid but necessary-

• A Biblical World View requires PH

• The nature of God, especially the truth that He is both transcendent and immanent at all times and places requires it.

• The Kingdom of God as His dynamic Rule gradually subjecting all to His control and purposes requires PH

• The Sovereignty and Providence of God over all, everywhere and at all times to His ultimate Glory requires it

• The authority of Christ over all things, including the affairs of Nations requires it.

• The Doctrine of the Creation of Time (and therefore of History itself) by God to accomplish His Purposes requires PH

• The reality of efficacious Prayer at all times and places requires it

• The phenomena of fulfilled Prophecy also requires Providential History

Of course all these Reasons are derived from Scripture, the ultimate external Source and major reason for being committed to PH. Each one of these Doctrines (above) under-girds and requires Providential History

CAVEAT Beware! Caution! Doing PH, we must be excellent scholars and be honest and humble researchers. when applying Biblical Principles to History, seeking to explain cause and effect about what happened, especially if we are looking to see the Hand of God at work. (Popular proponents of PH are often weak in these things and mislead many).

We also must be very humble about our deductions [our “take aways”] from particulars as we read History, as well as expanding those particulars into universal “truths”.

I heard a voice from heaven say, "Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them."

WHEN A Christian DIES, HE OR SHE IS “BLESSED”

THE “BLESSING” IS REST FROM LABOR = rest from HARD, DEMANDING WORK or a hard, painful life, rest from suffering

For “THEIR DEEDS WILL FOLLOW THEM”-------what does this mean?

The report of the good that Believers have done during their lives follows them TO HEAVEN.When we get there we will be welcomed and celebrated.We will hear the Lord’s greeting, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”(Parable of the Talents- Matt 25)

But what if our loved one died at their own hand?What about those who commit suicide?We sometimes hear that they could not have been saved or if they were, they are now lost.

The answer is in 1 Corinthians 3

[When it comes to salvation] 11 no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

SALVATION IS BY GRACE ALONE THROUGH CHRIST ALONE BY FAITH ALONE

if our loved one had confessed faith in Christ as his or her personal Savior, and we had seen evidence of that faith in their life, we ought to believe they were saved.Rev 14:13 applies to them.“Blessed are those who die in the Lord”

Since salvation is by faith, SALVATION IS NOT LOST BY A TERRIBLE SIN or BY A SINGULAR MAJOR ERROR IN JUDGMENT If it were, that would mean salvation is not by faith alone.But it is!

SALVATION IS BY GRACE ALONE THROUGH CHRIST ALONE BY FAITH ALONE and God promises that no one, and no terrible experience, can separate us from Christ and the grace that keeps us saved.

[When it comes to salvation] 11 no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. ------Now this verse goes on to say

13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light.It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work.

14 If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.

Romans 14:7 none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. 8 If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. 9 For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

10 You, then, why do you judge your brother [for the way in which he died]? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God's judgment seat.12…, each of us will give an account of himself to God.

GOD ALONE IS JUDGE---NOT US---WE MUST TRUST HIM TO DO RIGHT when we each appear before Him—no matter what we went through to get there

LIFE CAN BE VERY HARD----------WE ALL KNOW DEPRESSION.SOME OF US KNOW HOW SEVERE DEPRESSION CAN BE AND HOW HOPELESS LIFE CAN SEEM

IT IS A TERRIBLE THING TO GET TO THAT PLACE WHERE WE ARE SO OVERWHELMED BY OUR PROBLEMS & FAILURES or BY the LOSS ,or the threat ofthe loss,OF ALL THAT MATTERS to us –health, loved ones, freedom THAT WE BECOME CONVINCED THAT THERE IS NO SOLUTION-----ALL HOPE IS GONE------and we come to believe the only way out is to take ones own life

WE DO NOT WANT TO Get to that state of mind!WE NEED TO REAFFIRM now, before we are tempted to go there,THAT ----WITH GOD---THERE IS ALWAYS HOPE-----there is ALWAYS A WAY OUT----and that way is never suicide

1 Corinthians 10:13No temptation [the word means a TRIAL that will lead us into committing sin] has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be [TRIED] beyond what you can bear. But when you are [TRIED], he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

XIANS LIVE BY HOPE: EACH OF US---ALL OF US—we must have hope

Where does our hope come from?Form God and His Word

The HOPE that sustains us IS IN GOD AND His promises

Romans 5:5[this] hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out [THE ASSURANCE OF] his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Our hope is grounded in our assurance that God loves us.This confidence must be ours before we enter into dark thoughts and feelings that can overwhelm us

Romans 8:31 If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?

33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen?34 Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died--more than that, who was raised to life--is at the right hand of Godinterceding for us.

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

38 I am convinced [Beloved, we must be convinced, convinced at the very core of our being] that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

IT IS THIS ASSURANCE OF HIS LOVE THAT GIVES US THE HOPE THAT DOES NOT DISAPPOINT

When all seems hopeless- when you are tempted to give up on life there is hope

HOPE FOR TODAY----FOR TOMORROW--- FOR ETERNITY

We agonize because our loved one somehow lost sight of that hope

Romans 8:18I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 24in this hope we were saved.

1 Thessalonians 4:13 Brothers [and Sisters], we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.

PEOPLE OF THE WORLD HAVE NO HOPE------ WE XIANS do not need to be LIKE THEM WE have HOPE and it WILL NOT DISAPPOINT US

Now if we have hope that we will overcome the grave, that we will be resurrected and go Home to glory

If we have hope that God can give us victory over sin and death and the grace than we can have hope that God can help us overcome whatever our troubles are now

those who take their own lives have not held on to this hope and our hearts grieve deeply for them and those they leave behind

But those who are left behind must not do the same.They must hold on to this hope that is grounded in the Word of God

Wecan have assurance that whatever we are facing, with God our situation is not hopeless.By God’s grace, we can make it.We shall get through our heartache and trouble.We shall overcome

Let us close with words in Romans 12

Romans 12:12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.

ADVICE TO THOSE WHO SUFFER:

Be joyful in hope,

THIS IS SOMETHING THAT NON-CHRISTIANS DO NOT UNDERSTAND ABOUT US CHRISTIANS:WE CAN GO THROUGH TERRIBLE CRISIS AND SUFFERING BECAUSE WE HAVE HOPE that God gives FOR TODAY & TOMORROW

The amazing thing is that in that hope WE CAN ALSO HAVE JOY AND PEACE – for ourselves and for the loved one we have lost

BE Patient

TIME DOES NOT HEAL US, BUT HEALING REQUIRES TIME, LOTS OF TIME

WORKING OUR WAY THROUGH AFFLICTION & GRIEF IS A PROCESS:SHOCK ----------ANGER [BLAME]--------DENIAL-----------ACCEPTANCE

Lamentations 3:24-26--- "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hopein him."The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul that seeks him.It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.

Isaiah 30:15--- For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, "In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.

Perhaps this silence is best interpreted as letting go and ceasing to worry, calming down.A physical environment conducive to this is very desirable and there are techniques that are helpful, but what ultimately is necessary is mental and emotional discipline.

The word translated as "wait" in Psalm 62:5 (above) can also be translated as "rest".This is another aspect of waiting quietly. It calls for the discipline of allowing faith to control one's feelings.Anxious, fearful thoughts and dark feelings continually seek to disrupt prayer and meditation.They must be confronted with the fact of God's love and our deliberate choice to rest in that love and not in them.

Isaiah 8:17--- I will wait for the Lord...I will hope in Him [I will look eagerly for Him-NAS]

The word usually translated as "wait" literally means "to wait with hope".(Thus, the word is sometimes translated simply as "hope".)Waiting on the Lord is done with expectation that God will respond.

Waiting on the Lord involves expecting to hear Him speak, to make Himself known to us.Everything to this point has been preparatory to receiving the Word of the Lord. 1 Sam 3:9“Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening."

Does the Bible teach economic equality? or Government redistribution of wealth to create economic equality?A Major NT Text on this subject is 2 Cor 8-9

Paul says elsewhere "... remember the poor. I [have] made every effort to do [so]. Paul's advice to rich people: As for the rich in this present age, charge them ...to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share [with the poor] And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need (1 Tim 6:18, Titus 3:14)

Then there is always 1 John 3:17-18, if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed. and James 1:27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction and 2:14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works is dead. Scripture is clear! Christians are to consider and help the Poor. And the Biblical way to do that is more than writing a check. To give aid to the poor involves becoming personally involved with them. That is true "compassion". This word means "to suffer with". A classic example of that is the "Good Samaritan". Carefully re-read Luke 10: 29-37